Language Therapy

Speech and language therapy is an important part of the management of children with LKS. It should be delivered as part of a global approach, which also includes medical intervention, educational management, behaviour management (if needed) and pastoral care. Knowledge of the child’s general cognitive skills is essential to ensure an appropriately tailored programme, which gives consideration to all of the child’s abilities. It is also important for the speech and language therapist to work in conjunction with the medical team and to be aware of changes in medical treatment as language assessments can help to determine the effectiveness of these interventions.

It has been suggested that speech and language therapy should be provided as soon as possible after the onset of the disorder. All intervention must be tailored to the individual needs of the child and must include a high degree of flexibility and responsiveness. Many children are very variable in their performance, and the disorder is also very changeable, so it is inevitable that any programme will need frequent review and adaptation. Input during the early stages or following medical intervention should be intensive and have high priority to maximise the child’s potential for progress. Speech and language therapy is likely to be necessary (for the majority of children) on a long term basis. LKS is a rare syndrome and specialist advice should be sought as required to help determine the most appropriate form of intervention.

It is appropriate for restoration and development of spoken language comprehension and expression to be a first goal for the intervention programme. This may, however, need to be adapted depending on the responsiveness and progress of the child over time. Consequently, a broad based functional approach that builds on residual skills while maximising the child’s strengths is recommended. Such a pragmatic method enables the development of a range of communication skills and therapy goals can be adapted depending on the child’s progress over time. For children with severe language problems, the focus may be on providing an alternative means of communication (for example, symbols or signing) to ensure that the child can still communicate their needs and interests. For those with mild to moderate language problems, the focus would be on developing areas of weakness to facilitate the child’s ability to communicate more successfully through spoken language.

Further information about Speech Therapy can be found at the SpeechDisorder website.